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Tuesday, 22 March 2016

Review: Oasis by Eilis Barrett

Publisher: Gill BooksRelease Date: February 19 2016Source: Review copy from publisher[ Goodreads ] [ Book Depository ] Blurb: In the near future, a virus will drive humankind to the brink of extinction. With the illness spreading faster than attempts to control it, and society collapsing, the last surviving city will become a beacon of hope for survivors.Walled off from the outside world, this city is christened Oasis. Governing on a promise to protect its citizens from infection at all costs, the government of Oasis begins to impose its vision of the perfect society. Every aspect of life is controlled, and the city begins to take on a new, sinister shape.

Born into this world is Quincy Emerson, a resident of the Outer Sector Dorms, brutal housing institutions reserved for those judged at risk of infection. Beyond the walls of Oasis, however, something is stirring, and events are about to overtake Quincy. Her fate, it turns out, may not be written in her genes.

Big thank you to the publisher, Gill Books, for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for a review. I was so excited to read this book as the blurb sounded like something I would really enjoy, and Eilis is only 16 years old and is Irish like me!I first heard about this book last October when I attended Dept Con. Eilis was a speaker at one of the panels and I was so impressed by the eloquent way she spoke and so shocked that was just 16. Eilis is such an inspirational young woman having gotten a two book publishing deal at the age of just 15. I could not wait to read Oasis and when I did read it- I loved it! Oasis was the kind of book that slowly creeps into your heart. You're 50 pages in and enjoying it and the next thing you know you can not stop reading the book and even when you're doing something else you are constantly thinking about Quincey and Kole and the virus!

One of my absolute favourite things about this novel was Quincey. I loved Quincey. As the protagonist she brings us through this story and we learn so much about her. I really felt a connection to her when I was reading and really enjoyed reading the story through her matter-of-fact way of assessing the situation and motivation to just survive. I loved her interactions with Lacey and Bea but most of all Kole. Woah let me talk about Kole real quick. I loved Kole. He was there for Quincey from the very beginning just and he has this really caring side where he looks out for everyone and has the groups best interest at heart. Quincey and Kole were my OTP ..... but I also kind of love Jay too (and Clarke SO MUCH). When I was reading this book, I kept picturing Kole as Devon Bostick (from The 100)!

The plot of the novel was really gripping from the very beginning. I became familiar with the lingo and the setting so quickly and loved reading Quincey's backstory and all about the formation of Oasis. There was a strong "The 100" vibe to the novel, which was fine with me as I ADORE The 100, so just imagine lots of running, fighting, bad ass characters and group survival dynamics. Eilis has created such a vivid set of character living in this nightmare-ish world of class systems and abuse. Eilis has such a gripping and flawless writing style that you could easily read this book for hours. I also enjoyed the short-ish chapters. Eilis has such amazing writing ability that I can not wait to read all of her work in the future!I had a few small problems with the novel but not too many. I found a few of the plot twists to be obvious and I could see one of the major twists from the start of the novel. I think this may because I overthink everything and has nothing to do with Eilis's writing style. Apart from a few predictable plot twists- I really really enjoyed this novel and need the next book right now!! I'm gonna give this a 4 . 5 rating!Also if you have read this novel, please tweet me and talk to me about it!